The present invention relates generally to an energy conservation apparatus for recirculating warm, moist air exhausted by a clothes dryer, and more particularly, toward a simple device adapted to be attached to the conventional dryer vent pipe and carrying a special filter bag that can be periodically detached from the device and emptied.
The conventional clothes dryer used in households across the country heats the clothes during tumbling to cause forced evaporation of moisture. The warm, moist air developed by the dryer is normally vented out a vent pipe through a wall or window to the outside. In typical natural gas or electric clothes dryers, approximately 20,000 to 30,000 BTU's per hour are generated while the dryer is in use, and most are essentially wasted once the warm, moist air has been exhausted from the dryer.
In view of rising requirements throughout the nation, it has become necessary to make maximum use of all available energy. One way of maximizing energy consumption efficiency is to use the warm, moist air exhausted by the clothes dryer for heating and humidifying the home. The concept of using the clothes dryer exhaust for humidifying the home is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,716,925 to Hartung. Therein, a relatively complex venting system disposed between the dryer and outdoor vent includes a manually operated vent plate located in a length of straight tubing having an opening around which is placed a cylindrical filter. The filter is formed by a spaced apart pair of imperforate discs, around which is secured a foraminous wall and filter blanket. While generally somewhat satisfactory, the Hartung system is relatively expensive and is difficult to install since it requires outdoor venting. Furthermore, since there is outdoor venting, there is heat loss to the outdoors even when the vent plate is operated to deflect the dryer exhaust through the cylindrical filter into the room. Still further, because the cylindrical filter is of a substantially larger diameter than the vent tube, the dryer must be located away from a wall to provide clearance for the filter, thereby wasting floor space.
Accordingly, one object of the present invention is to provide an improved device for recirculating warm, moist air exhausted from a clothes dryer within a room for energy conservation.
Another object of the invention is to provide a dryer exhaust recirculation device which does not require the provision of any outdoor venting.
Another object is to provide a dryer exhaust recirculation device that is easily manufactured and readly installed.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a dryer exhaust recirculation device having a filter bag that is readily detached for emptying.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a dryer exhaust recirculation device which permits the dryer to be located close to a wall to minimize the amount of floor space used.